Surge or Static: Herbert came fully-loaded

Sunday’s game was the type of up-and-down game that makes football fans remember why they love the sport so much in the first place. It just so happened that the Chargers weren’t on the right end of the final score.

Still, the game was full of positives. Like, a ton, so it was tough to decide on just a few names for the “Surge” section this week.

Static proved to be tough in it’s own way but I finally settled on two that felt right.

Here’s your Week 2 edition of Surge or Static. Let’s get to it.

Surge

QB Justin Herbert
Week Two Stats - 22-of-33, 311 yards, one passing touchdown, one interception, one rushing touchdown

The entirety of my Twitter timeline was flush with identical remarks following the opening kickoff of the Chargers game.

“Justin Herbert is starting?”

“Holy crap, Herbert is starting!”

“Umm...what is going on?”

Everyone had the same thought going through their head at the time, and every single one of those people went on to experience the pure ecstasy of watching Herbert march the team down the field and cap it with his first career touchdown - a four-yard scramble that made it inside the right pylon.

While certainly throwing a few passes that he wished he could have back, Herbert made just as many eye-popping plays. Some of those plays happened immediately following a negative one, specifically the pair of precision throws made following the bone-headed sack he took in the second half.

Herbert performed so far beyond expectations that fans are finding it incredibly difficult to settle down and realize it was just one game. The thing is....I’m right there with you.

I think if the Chargers are going to make Herbert the starter anytime soon, they need to give him the start against Carolina before he takes on both the Saints and Bucs in weeks four and five. If they still plan to wait, then I can understand why they would keep Tyrod as the starter through, at least, the tough back-to-back slate of New Orleans and Tampa Bay.

Final note on Herbert: Man, he looked good. The offense just POPPED. It was night-and-day between this week and last. I just hope the coaches end up making the right call, whatever it may be.

The Chargers’ backfield
Week Two Stats (combined) - 39 carries, 157 rushing yards / six catches, 104 receiving yards

Holy cow did these two combine for a lot of work.

As the backup, not the lead, but the backup running back, Joshua Kelley saw a whopping 23 carries (25 total touches) against the Chiefs while Austin Ekeler saw 16 carries and another four catches which had him hit the 20+ touch threshold, as well.

Seeing both your ball-carriers combine for over 260 yards of total offense must have been quite the sight for Lynn who has shown through two weeks that he wants to win through the guys who tote the rock.

After two weeks, Ekeler is sixth in the NFL with 177 rushing yards (5.1 YPC) while Kelley is 18th with 124.

DT Jerry Tillery
Week Two Stats - One tackle, two QB hits, blocked PAT

Tillery has completely shed the early “bust” label following another fantastic outing for the Chargers defense. The thing is, this performance may not have shined in the final box score, but it was fairly obvious when you threw on the tape.

Tillery was in the face of Patrick Mahomes over and over again. His impressive performance also included a big special teams play when he blocked the Chiefs’ first PAT attempt of the game.

Through the first two weeks of the season, Tillery is tied for sixth among defensive tackles in ESPN’s Pass Rush Win Rate at 22%. His early season success has him in the same company with other stars at the position such as Chris Jones, Cameron Hayward, and Grady Jarrett.

He’ll have an excellent opportunity to continue this dominant start to the year when he faces the extremely young Carolina Panthers defense this Sunday.

Static

S Nasir Adderley
Week Two Stats - four total tackles

Adderley finds himself on the wrong side of this article for the second-straight week after another questionable outing. The 2019 second-round pick had lofty expectations heading into his first real season in the NFL. So far, his played has been littered with bad pursuit angles and questionable decision-making.

I always thought he was a natural at the free safety position, especially when he’s playing centerfield. He’s had two tough assignments with the offensive weapons of both the Bengals and Chiefs, so here’s hoping it’s just a tough first stretch for the second-year defender.

Anthony Lynn

Lynn is here for the lack of aggressiveness in overtime with the decision to punt on a 4th-and-1 situation. Even at his 34-yard line, it was still a better choice then giving the ball back to the offense that your defense was incapable of stopping in the second half.

If he’s willing to count on his offense to extend drives throughout regulation time, he can do the same for them in overtime. You don’t preach the way he does when it comes to getting the tough yards and then not put that responsibility on your guys when it matters most.